Community Reviews

This obscure and wonderful collection of fairytales is not, perhaps, quite as filthy as you might expect from something called Lo cunto de li cunti, but it's still full of bizarre and scatological delights. Written in the early 1600s – before the Grimms, before Perrault – it contains the first known versions of famous tales like Cinderella, Rapunzel, Hansel & Gretel, or Sleeping Beauty, all of them dramatically different from how they're told today, and throws in for good measure a host of mThis obscure and wonderful collection of fairytales is not, perhaps, quite as filthy as you might expect from something called Lo cunto de li cunti, but it's still full of bizarre and scatological delights. Written in the early 1600s – before the Grimms, before Perrault – it contains the first known versions of famous tales like Cinderella, Rapunzel, Hansel & Gretel, or Sleeping Beauty, all of them dramatically different from how they're told today, and throws in for good measure a host of more recondite folk-stories that I had never heard before.

Their author, Giambattista Basile, was a kind of itinerant courtier and sometime soldier from outside Naples, who wrote in an elaborate, rococo form of Neapolitan as well as (elsewhere) in standard Italian. In The Tales of Tales, Basile gathers his stories together under a frame narrative, in a half-parodic imitation of Boccaccio: the tone is set early when a princess gets a curse put on her for laughing at an old woman's vagina, as a distant result of which it becomes necessary – don't ask why – for ten women to tell five stories each across the space of five days. Hence the alternative title of the Pentamerone.

Each story is no more than four or five pages long, which makes this an easy book to read, despite its length. And each begins with a helpful one-paragraph synopsis. I can give you an idea of the kind of thing we're dealing with by quoting one of these in its entirety – here's the précis of tale 5.1, ‘The Goose’:

Lilla and Lolla buy a coin-shitting goose at the market. A neighbor asks to borrow it, and when she sees that it's the opposite of what it should be, she kills it and throws it out the window. The goose attaches itself to a prince's ass while he's relieving himself, and no one but Lolla can remove it; for this reason the prince takes her for his wife.

Yep. The scene where the prince is trying to wipe his arse on the dead goose's neck is particularly to be recommended.

And this flair for the Rabelaisian is put to surprisingly effective use within the stories, generating some impressive insults and metaphors. ‘Why don't you shut that sewer hole, you bogeyman's grandmother, blood-sucking witch, baby drowner, rag shitter, fart gatherer?’ yells one character, while another is dismissed as ‘a flycatcher who wasn't worth his weight in dog sperm’. Someone else is described as being so terrified that ‘they wouldn't have been able to take an enema made of a single pig's bristle’.

A still from the rather wonderful 2015 film version, directed by Matteo Garrone

Basile's obscurity, at least in the English-speaking world, is due in no small part to the lack of decent translations, which makes this new rendering from Nancy L Canepa – the first since the 1930s – extremely welcome. More than welcome; it feels staggeringly overdue. Most previous editions have been based on Benedetto Croce's ‘not always faithful’ 1925 translation into Italian, whereas Canepa is working straight from the original Neapolitan. To show what a difference it makes, let's return to that coin-shitting goose we met earlier. A line from the original tale runs:

The previous complete English translation – from Penzer in 1932, working from Croce's Italian – translated this like so:

But dawn comes and it turns out to be a fine day: the worthy goose began to make golden ducats, so that, little by little, they filled a great chest with them…

But Canepa's translation restores the forceful vulgarity of the original:

And when morning breaks it's a nice day, for the good goose began to shit hard cash until, shitload upon shitload, they had filled up a whole chest.

You can see that it really feels like we're hearing Basile for the first time now. This gives a wonderful sense of discovery to Canepa's translation, even if for my own taste she sometimes seems to favour word-for-word accuracy over English readability (with the convenient, if believable, justification that Basile's own Neapolitan must have been quite a challenge even to contemporaries). Any quibbles are more than made up for by the wealth of notes and other apparatus, which give generous citations of the original and explain those flourishes of wordplay or references that Canepa has not attempted to modernise.

Taking this fabulous, irreverent tour of seventeenth-century life is an exhilarating experience, and even an uplifting one. Although he deals with violence, revenge and death, Basile is not especially interested in tragedy or cruelty; it's impossible to imagine him other than with a smile on his face. And indeed impossible to read him without one, either....more

Perhaps, the weirdest collection of fairy tales I've come across in my study of fairy tales. These were written in the seventeenth century, before bigger names like Grimm and Perrault. You can tell at times because most of these stories are early versions of best loved tales like Cinderella, Rapunzel Puss in Boots, and Sleeping Beauty. Unlike Grimm and Perrault, this isn't an anthology of fairy tales. This is a novel set up similar to Arabian Nights and Canterbury Tales. It's a story about telliPerhaps, the weirdest collection of fairy tales I've come across in my study of fairy tales. These were written in the seventeenth century, before bigger names like Grimm and Perrault. You can tell at times because most of these stories are early versions of best loved tales like Cinderella, Rapunzel Puss in Boots, and Sleeping Beauty. Unlike Grimm and Perrault, this isn't an anthology of fairy tales. This is a novel set up similar to Arabian Nights and Canterbury Tales. It's a story about telling fifty tales.

This book is not for children. Despite the fact it's fairy tales, this is for adults. Words like "bitch" and "shit" get tossed around more than once. I kind of find that interesting because this book is older than most collections, but than again, seeing this was written in the early seventeenth century I'm not surprised either. As I said before, these are like Canterbury Tales, but easier to read (well maybe that's the translator's doing).

There's a movie version I recommend watching before this book. Most times I'd say to read the book first, but the movie help me figure out what some of the tales were like beforehand. The movie isn't a frame story like the book, but it has some of the weirder tales. It's a good introduction what you'll except. The movie is R too, which I thought was a little off, but than I actually read the book...

I kind of wish this collection wasn't so underrated on Goodreads though. So many people like fairy tales, but so many people I see ignore or don't know this book exists. Even though I'm giving this a high ratting, this isn't the best book in the word, it's not even that well written, but it's great for people actually interested in studying fairy tales. Penguin's edition has a ton of notes and tales you which fairy tales are similar with each tale. This book would make a great book to study in college or a class about fairy tales too, I think....more

A Great collection of fairy tales, made great mainly by the style. It has the kind of far out fantastic elements that lingered from folk traditions going back to the middle ages, the sort of thing where a magic box or fairy can do absolutely anything instantly and miraculously, like a genie's lamp or a Holy Grail, and most problems are solved by magical intervention.

If you were to look at the book in terms of ideology, you might be mortified. If the book has an ideology it could be expressed as:A Great collection of fairy tales, made great mainly by the style. It has the kind of far out fantastic elements that lingered from folk traditions going back to the middle ages, the sort of thing where a magic box or fairy can do absolutely anything instantly and miraculously, like a genie's lamp or a Holy Grail, and most problems are solved by magical intervention.

If you were to look at the book in terms of ideology, you might be mortified. If the book has an ideology it could be expressed as:

-Good people are beautiful.-Ugly people are wicked.-Being black is ugly, and that in itself justifies slavery.-Good people will be magically rewarded, and wicked people will be justly punished, usually by physical dismemberment or very violent and painful death... thank god!

But it's not a book of ideology. It's fairy tales, wittily told, with an overabundance of metaphor, pushed to an extreme. It's entertaining for adults, and has a great cultural character as entertainment.

Some of the stories, as stories, are hardly worth talking about for their plots. Yet they're great experiences, driven by plot (there's an irony).

Better, in my estimation, than the forms of the same tales as they reemerged through Grimm into the popular imagination. I never in my life could have enjoyed "Puss in Boots," nor could I understand why anyone would ever care about that rotten tale, not even why toddlers would like it. But the story that inspired it, as told by Basile, is quite entertaining and goes beyond my expectation. I felt the same way about the stories that inspired Cinderella and Rapunzel, which in their modern forms are entirely without interest. Perhaps I just like the primitive and raw origins of folk literature, when dressed up by a crudely witty narrator.

This is a strong recommendation, even if it doesn't sound like one!...more

Back in these ages, when they wanted to describe something super beautiful or super ugly, they made sure they drilled the descriptions into your skull. These tales are not a forgiving bunch. If somebody is kinda ugly, they are ABOMINATIONS. If somebody is kind of pretty they are PULCHRITUDINOUS. While they don't use these words, they'll use hundreds of words that are like these and enable in and on.

Fifty fairy tales, told over five nights, from Italy over two centuries before the Brothers Grimm.

These tales weren't exactly for the little ones, as the subtitle suggests. Lots of excrement, sex, and racism. And obscure references--jokes about Italian culture of the time--that you're constantly having to stop and look up.

Not my favorite collection and not the easiest to read, but still interesting, especially seeing tales that were later picked up and censored by the Grimms.

I didn't make it through the introduction, because that first story is racist as fuck and, sure, it was originally written in the 1600s but like I cannot and I don't want to.

The story is about a black slave girl, described as "that mass of dark flesh" who lies and takes the place of a good girl, and becomes the princess. I quit hard when the slave (she doesn't get a name) threatens to kill her baby because the prince was making eyes at the other girl:

"If you no move from windowsill, me punch bel

I didn't make it through the introduction, because that first story is racist as fuck and, sure, it was originally written in the 1600s but like I cannot and I don't want to.

The story is about a black slave girl, described as "that mass of dark flesh" who lies and takes the place of a good girl, and becomes the princess. I quit hard when the slave (she doesn't get a name) threatens to kill her baby because the prince was making eyes at the other girl:

"If you no move from windowsill, me punch belly and little Georgie kill."

Collection presents early versions of Cinderella, Puss in Boots, and others. Very good. I really enjoyed the story about the king and the two old ladies. This is an adult collection with bawdy humor and a Cinderella who kills a step-mother.

One of the more ancient collections of popular stories of Europe, the "Tale of Tales" is a jewel. Sometimes Basile's language is too "Baroque" (he did not "just" copy the tales as he heard them, he used a more educated and literary language), but it is a work of great beauty, with stories that move away from this image of songs and glitter spread by our pollitically-correct-obsessed society. Here we find jewels like " The Tale of the Ogre", "The Myrlte", "The Two Cakes" and "The Old Woman who was Skinned Alive" (brilliant the latter), but also we read about Old friends like a very peculiar Rapunzel ("Petrosinella") a female Puss in Boots ("Cagliuso"), a Sleeping Beauty who gives birth twins while he sleeps (" Sun, Moon and Talía ") or a crafty, challenging Cinderella with a developed killer instinct ("Cat Cinderella")If you want to know new tales or see how The classics changed, this is your book. Basile's Pentamerone is essential for Folktales' lovers and addicts....more

Pentamerone, or "The Tale of Tales". Obscure and fantastic 17th's century tales for adults that burst out of: proverbs, luscious sexual insinuations, absurd, lust, incestuous and pervert sexual fantasies, reviles, interesting story lines and moral precepts at the end of each story. As it is well known - those tales were formidable inspirations for brothers Grimm, Andersen and Perrault to accommodate its sexual and obscure content to a form that is (more or less) children-susceptible. Hence, suchPentamerone, or "The Tale of Tales". Obscure and fantastic 17th's century tales for adults that burst out of: proverbs, luscious sexual insinuations, absurd, lust, incestuous and pervert sexual fantasies, reviles, interesting story lines and moral precepts at the end of each story. As it is well known - those tales were formidable inspirations for brothers Grimm, Andersen and Perrault to accommodate its sexual and obscure content to a form that is (more or less) children-susceptible. Hence, such a bereavement is that this work of art is translated in American English and not in British. For the former dialect is quite trivial, uncouth, vulgar, commercial and colloquial, that, in lesser manner, mares the beauty of this piece, although all of peasantry that is present in many stories is thus highlighted. Yet, if the translation was in British English, the one could expect specific humor, typical for its lore and exempt of modern colloquial phrases and words that the one may encounter in movies (eg. daddy, pal, dude etc.) and which is quite loathsome for my taste....more

This was one of the more interesting fairy tale collections I have read.

Collected in the early 1600s by Basile, this book has some of the oldest versions of some of the better-known fairy tales (e.g., Puss In Boots). But it also holds some very bizarre fairy tales I'd never read before. Many of them use plot devices familiar to any folklore buff—like the wicked stepmother, super-talented helpers, ogres of all kinds, enchanted beauties hidden in animal skins or fruit, hidden objects, and (of courThis was one of the more interesting fairy tale collections I have read.

Collected in the early 1600s by Basile, this book has some of the oldest versions of some of the better-known fairy tales (e.g., Puss In Boots). But it also holds some very bizarre fairy tales I'd never read before. Many of them use plot devices familiar to any folklore buff—like the wicked stepmother, super-talented helpers, ogres of all kinds, enchanted beauties hidden in animal skins or fruit, hidden objects, and (of course) fairies—but they're all recombined in new ways. A story that seems like it's going the Hansel and Gretel route ends up with the girl living inside a giant fish. One tale I was sure would end up being Sleeping Beauty suddenly involves mysterious children named Sun and Moon and a jealous queen who solves problems through cannibalism. Many of the stories are almost off-handedly violent, speaking of characters' murders in such matter-of-fact ways that it seems almost mundane if it weren't so shocking. Some tales have little hints of sexual overtones and nudity as well, but that too is written without the wink and nudge you'd expect. The straight-forwardness was almost refreshing.

The stories are written in elaborate prose using a lot of metaphor. Lines like, "So next morning, as soon as the Sun with his golden broom had swept away the dirt of the Night from the fields watered by the dawn..." are commonplace.

I would not recommend sitting down and reading this book in one sitting. I did not. I read stories between other books, as a way of cleansing my palate. (The version I found was free on Guttenberg, but it did not have all 50 stories from the original; the version I downloaded only had 30-some tales. I also wished it had illustrations, but sometimes you can't have it all...) ...more

Interesting collection of stories, with flavors of both the West and the East (though, thank heaven, with fewer "May he live forevers" than the Arabian Nights). A notable difference from the Grimm collection was that most of the characters had names. I don't know if these are the collector Basile's contributions or a difference of culture.

I enjoyed the author's aversion to just saying "The next day..." or "When the sun rose..." Instead we read "As soon as the Sun with the broom of its rays hadInteresting collection of stories, with flavors of both the West and the East (though, thank heaven, with fewer "May he live forevers" than the Arabian Nights). A notable difference from the Grimm collection was that most of the characters had names. I don't know if these are the collector Basile's contributions or a difference of culture.

I enjoyed the author's aversion to just saying "The next day..." or "When the sun rose..." Instead we read "As soon as the Sun with the broom of its rays had cleared away the soot of the Night" and so forth, each metaphorical reference more extravagant than the last.

But my very favorite story was that of whiny prince Nardo Aniello and the lovely Ogress' daughter Filadora, because of the following:

"But Filadora, drying his eyes, said to him, 'Fear not that my mother will touch a hair of your head. Trust to me and do not be afraid; for you must know that I possess magical powers, and am able to make cream set on water and to darken the sun...'

"When Nardo Aniello heard this, he answered, 'If you have magic power, as you say, O beauty of the world, why do we not fly from this country? For you shall live like a queen in my father's house.' And Filadoro replied, 'A certain conjunction of the stars prevents this, but the trouble will soon pass and we shall be happy.'"

Later it turns out that she literally meant the bit about the "certain conjunction of the stars--" that is, that the zodiac was astrologically affecting her magical abilities. But I have never read such an explicit reference by a character to the mechanics of fairy stories: "If you're so powerful, why don't you just get us out of this mess?" "Because that would make the story boring. Duh."At least, it's not something you would find in any fairy tale that takes itself seriously. Maybe something by Terry Pratchett. In any case, it amused me no end....more

A fantastic translation, with an informative introduction and very helpful footnotes. This is an excellent resource for the earliest Western versions of some of the most well-loved fairy tales.

Canepa's work is especially welcome, since the last complete English translation was done by Sir Richard Burton in the late 19th century. While his version does tell all the tales, I've read that it is more of a freer translation, and it offers nothing in the way of context or notes. I have a copy of BurtoA fantastic translation, with an informative introduction and very helpful footnotes. This is an excellent resource for the earliest Western versions of some of the most well-loved fairy tales.

Canepa's work is especially welcome, since the last complete English translation was done by Sir Richard Burton in the late 19th century. While his version does tell all the tales, I've read that it is more of a freer translation, and it offers nothing in the way of context or notes. I have a copy of Burton's work, and while I would have enjoyed the Canepa's book on it's own, her version is simply magnificent in comparison.

Just a few of the stories that would be familiar today are proto-version of Cinderella, Puss-in-Boots, and Rapunzel. But these are not for kids! Cinderella is a murderer, Puss-in-Boots has a falling out with her owner, and Rupunzel is simply horrifying - or rather, the prince in the story is.

But aside from the more recognizable tales, the other stories are good as well. Standouts for me are The Flea, The Woman Who Skinned Herself (but only because I take her sister as meaning to be ridiculous, not as offering serious advice), and The She-Bear. This last one takes the story of All-Fur and goes even further - rather than dressing as an animal, the princess actually turns into a bear!

All in all, Canepa's translation is a gift to English readers interested in fairy tales and folklore.

This is a brilliant and fantastical collection of early fairy tales. The framing story is really interesting and gives us almost an Arabian Nights set up to work within. Each story is a complete entity, and every one is work reading. The style is light, informal and engaging... I am sure that this is thanks in part to the excellent translation, having read the notes at the start thus has stuck as closely to the original as possible. A few of the attitudes expressed clash with modern sensibilitieThis is a brilliant and fantastical collection of early fairy tales. The framing story is really interesting and gives us almost an Arabian Nights set up to work within. Each story is a complete entity, and every one is work reading. The style is light, informal and engaging... I am sure that this is thanks in part to the excellent translation, having read the notes at the start thus has stuck as closely to the original as possible. A few of the attitudes expressed clash with modern sensibilities, the stories were written in the 1600s, however far less so than in nineteenth century written fairy tales such as Andersen or Grimm, and actually there were fewer instances than I have found in a lot of mid twentieth century literature as well. If you are unable to read past the couple of dodgy moments then I don't know how you would cope with reading any of the historic classics, as every one of them represents the time in which they were written. Having said this the collection is certainly not suitable for young readers, there is sex, violence and a fair bit of gore, certainly fairy tales for grown ups only....more

I read these tales in order to have a working knowledge of the origins of some fairy tales - these tales are often absurdly incomprehensible - but do appreciate the loads of footnotes. I collect and study old fairy tales, so this was a necessary read - but didn't enjoy it.

Il Pentamerone, as it's otherwise called, is I think my favorite collection of fairy tales. Call me morbid, but I love the humor and absurdity of Basile's stories, unbound as they are from propriety and Christian morals. These tales include several of the darkest and most violent fables I've ever seen, and yet I've never before laughed so much reading a fairy tale collection. You can't help but laugh when so many ridiculous things occur, like a man assigning a bear to be his family physician andIl Pentamerone, as it's otherwise called, is I think my favorite collection of fairy tales. Call me morbid, but I love the humor and absurdity of Basile's stories, unbound as they are from propriety and Christian morals. These tales include several of the darkest and most violent fables I've ever seen, and yet I've never before laughed so much reading a fairy tale collection. You can't help but laugh when so many ridiculous things occur, like a man assigning a bear to be his family physician and cook, or when a princess is wedded to an ogre because he miraculously pointed out that an animal's hide belonged to an oversized flea. There's also an element of action and excitement in some of the stories which is uncommon for fairy tales, such as in the story of "The Flea" when the ogre is chasing Porziella and her rescuers.

Part of the humor comes from Basile's attention to detail and vivid style of writing. Rarely do you get such colorful descriptions and insight into character psychology with fairy tales. The princess, for example, who is wedded to the ogre gives an impassioned tirade the likes of which you'd be hard put to find in writing of other fairy tale writers. Not even Anderson, who is famous for his detailed fables, gives his characters as much life as Basile does.

It's truly a joy reading his writing. I must warn those reading translations, that Basile's style is sometimes curtailed or censored (particularly with the Gutenberg translation), so that much of his style is lost. I loved reading those moments of bawdy humor that Basile has randomly scattered throughout, such as this quote from "The Raven":

"As he spoke he felt his legs stiffen and turn to marble. And when he went on to relate the affair of the horse in the same manner, he became visibly stone up to the waist, stiffening miserably--a thing which at another time he would have paid in read money, but which now his heart wept at."

"The Raven", though among the darkest of his stories, including things like necrophilia, patricide, brutal animal maiming, and suicide, I found the funniest of the collection. The ending almost had me in tears from laughing. The thing about Basile's stories is that it's simply impossible to take them seriously, like you might with Andersen's stories.

I'm sure I'm one of the few non-Italian people in the world that have heard of this collection before it was made into a movie in 2015, so I'll say for those who've watched the movie first, that stories do a great job of capturing the atmosphere and grotesque absurdity of the stories, but also gives them a stronger sense of tragedy, simply by virtue of making them visually realistic.

This collection is shocking and hilarious, as well as being the earliest recorded versions of some famous fables, such as "Sleeping Beauty", "Rapunzel", "Cinderella", "The Girl Without Hands", and "The Three Spinners". It is also the basis for Prokofiev's Opera, L'amour des trois oranges. So do give it a read when you have the chance....more

These are tales copied after being told for centuries in the oral tradition. They can be ribald, raunchy and truly naughty in language, definitely not making these stories for children. They are also rather long and convoluted, one story bleeding into another like an oil spill dropped on delicate silk. Sorting through the threads of the storylines thus becomes something of a challenge in itself, robbing the books of the natural flow one associates with more coherent and less complex plots.

Whoa. Another side of the fairytale genre I was not familiar with. A fascinating read if you are interested in fairytales beyond the worlds of Lang, Andersen, and Grimm. Lots of giants that eat broccoli!

For people who like The Decameron or not-necessarily-kid-friendly fairy tales, but aren't particularly reverent towards either of them, this is a pretty good read. It's cynical, iconoclastic, and bawdy as shit, and I'll bet it can make you actually laugh within the first fifty pages. So why did I dock it a star? Well, as is the case with some of the Brothers Grimm's fairy tales (or even, sometimes, Hans Christian Andersen's), sometimes it was a little grating just HOW cold-blooded these unadulteFor people who like The Decameron or not-necessarily-kid-friendly fairy tales, but aren't particularly reverent towards either of them, this is a pretty good read. It's cynical, iconoclastic, and bawdy as shit, and I'll bet it can make you actually laugh within the first fifty pages. So why did I dock it a star? Well, as is the case with some of the Brothers Grimm's fairy tales (or even, sometimes, Hans Christian Andersen's), sometimes it was a little grating just HOW cold-blooded these unadulterated fairy tales can be. In particular, I was a little uncomfortable with the racial attitudes as shown in the treatment of the slave girl (and I say that as somebody who's no one's idea of PC). However, I don't think that's worth a whole star in itself: different times and so forth; and the important thing to remember about the slave girl is not that she is a slave, or that she's black, or that she's presumably a Muslim: it's that she's a bitch. But what tipped me over is that the book's humor and idiosyncrasies get kind of repetitive in the long run. You can only read so many barrages of sexual metaphors or so many references to someone's 'little fart of a daughter' before it all becomes a bit less magical. Granted, I'm a monogamous reader, and one who likes to read in heavy doses; maybe to someone who reads a little bit of this at a time while also reading other things it would stay a little fresher. So... four stars. Dig in and marvel at how messed up Baroque Italy was....more

This fairy tale collection offers variants of several better-known Mother Goose stories like Cinderella (“The Cinderella Cat”), The Fairies (“The Two Little Pizzas”), Puss in Boots (“Cagliuso”), and Sleeping Beauty (“Sun, Moon, and Talia”). But where the Mother Goose versions are relatively simple stories for children, Basile's work is amazing, particularly in this unexpurgated translation by Nancy Canepa. It’s full of crude language, fun literally-translated idioms, bizarre metaphors, strange iThis fairy tale collection offers variants of several better-known Mother Goose stories like Cinderella (“The Cinderella Cat”), The Fairies (“The Two Little Pizzas”), Puss in Boots (“Cagliuso”), and Sleeping Beauty (“Sun, Moon, and Talia”). But where the Mother Goose versions are relatively simple stories for children, Basile's work is amazing, particularly in this unexpurgated translation by Nancy Canepa. It’s full of crude language, fun literally-translated idioms, bizarre metaphors, strange imagery, amusing lists, and so on. It’s so wild that the only European text I’d really compare it to is Rabelais, because subsequent European fairy tale collections just don’t play with language/rhetoric to the same degree....more

Somehow makes blood sacrifices seem cute, and there are a LOT of sacrifices in this Neapolitan collection of tales, guaranteed to scare the wits out of small children (if they actually think about it). Three of these were used (loosely) as the basis for the movie "Tale of Tales."

The earliest versions of some of our most beloved fairytales including Sleeping Beauty, Puss in Boots, Hansel and Gretel, Snow White and others, appear in this book. You can download this one for free from Gutenberg.

I had noooo idea 17th c. Italians were so obsessed with the state of their bowels. Seriously - so much mention of pooping, dysentery, or constipation - at least several times per story. I would not recommend this for modern children. Entertaining in a fascinating trainwreck sort of way.

Born to a Neapolitan middle-class family, Basile was, during his career, a courtier and soldier to various Italian princes, including the doge of Venice. According to Benedetto Croce he was born in 1575, while other sources have February 1566. In Venice he began to write poetry. Later he returned to Naples to serve as a courtier under the patronage of Don Marino II Caracciolo, prince of Avellino,Born to a Neapolitan middle-class family, Basile was, during his career, a courtier and soldier to various Italian princes, including the doge of Venice. According to Benedetto Croce he was born in 1575, while other sources have February 1566. In Venice he began to write poetry. Later he returned to Naples to serve as a courtier under the patronage of Don Marino II Caracciolo, prince of Avellino, to whom he dedicated his idyll L’Aretusa (1618). By the time of his death he had reached the rank of "count" Conte di Torrone.

Basile's earliest known literary production is from 1604 in the form of a preface to the Vaiasseide of his friend the Neapolitan writer Giulio Cesare Cortese. The following year his villanella Smorza crudel amore was set to music and in 1608 he publish his poem Il Pianto della Vergine.

He is chiefly remembered for writing the collection of Neapolitan fairy tales titled Lo cunto de li cunti overo lo trattenemiento de peccerille (Neapolitan for The Tale of Tales, or Entertainment for Little Ones), also known as Il Pentamerone published posthumously in two volumes by his sister Adriana in Naples, Italy in 1634 and 1636 under the pseudonym Gian Alesio Abbatutis. It later became known as the Pentamerone. Although neglected for some time, the work received a great deal of attention after the Brothers Grimm praised it highly as the first national collection of fairy tales. Many of these fairy tales are the oldest known variants in existence. They include the earliest known versions of "Rapunzel" and "Cinderella"....more